Meet the 86 Year Old Portillo's Florida Fanatic!

An obsession with Portillo's knows no age limit, as proven by 86 year old Bill Blecher, who has been eating Italian beefs and Polish sausages for over 50 years! Bill’s son, James, nominated his fanatical father as part of Portillo’s Get Obsessed campaign, declaring him to be the ultimate Super Fan. After hearing his story, we couldn’t help but agree!

Bill’s love for Portillo’s dates back over five decades ago, all the way to ordering his hot dog to be dragged through the garden at the original Dog House! When he moved to Florida a few years ago, his weekly visits switched to shipping Italian beef to the Sunshine State so that his freezer was always stocked.

But when we opened our much anticipated Tampa location, Bill was once again united with his favorite beefs, burgers, and hot dogs! He made it his mission to share his Portillo’s passion with as many people as possible, and now asks anyone he encounters, “Have you tried Portillo’s yet? There isn’t anything bad on the menu! They’ll even give you a full slice of cake for free on your birthday if you sign up for their Birthday Club!”

Bill has befriended our Tampa team through his weekly visits, and he loves how they treat him like family. Last February, Bill fell ill the week of his birthday and was afraid he missed his chance at redeeming his free piece of chocolate cake. The Portillo’s Tampa crew made sure that wasn’t the case, and got their biggest fan his celebratory slice! One crew member even let him wear the famous uniform hat for a picture, which Bill promptly sent out to family and friends nationwide!

There’s no doubt about it. Bill is obsessed with Portillo’s! After hearing Bill’s story, we were all too happy to send the self-proclaimed Portillo’s ambassador a box of swag, including his very own coveted crew hat! It should come as no surprise that Bill immediately took his new goodies to his Tampa Portillo’s to pose for pictures with the crew. Only Bill could pull off wearing sunglasses and a beach towel indoors! Thank you, Bill, for being such a big fan and showing that once and for all, there truly is no age limit when it comes to being obsessed with Portillo’s!

Do you know someone who is as obsessed with Portillo’s as Bill? Share your story here!